The reckoning for the media and entertainment industry is that further layoffs will continue in 2024 as rising costs and debt-laden balance sheets continue to weigh on the struggling industry.
Here’s what top media and entertainment companies have in mind when it comes to layoffs in 2024.
paramount global
Amid M&A rumors surrounding the future of Paramount Global (PARA), CEO Bob Bakish announced layoffs in an internal memo obtained by Yahoo Finance on Thursday.
The executive cited the need to “operate as a lean company and reduce spending.”
“As in past years, this means we will continue to reduce our workforce globally. These decisions are never easy, but they are essential to our path to revenue growth,” the memo said. has been written.
YouTube
Even tech giant Alphabet (GOOG, GOOGL) is not immune to layoffs.
Last week, the company cut 100 employees from YouTube’s creator management and operations divisions, a spokesperson confirmed to Yahoo Finance. This is the company’s first corporate reorganization in 10 years. YouTube has 7,173 employees worldwide.
The layoffs come after Alphabet’s layoffs thousands of jobs We are working to reduce headcount across our engineering, hardware, and advertising teams.
united music group
Universal Music Group (UMG), one of the industry’s most prominent record companies, reported that it plans to lay off hundreds of employees later this quarter. bloomberg.
UMG has not fully confirmed the report, but a spokesperson hinted at the layoffs in a company statement provided to Yahoo Finance, saying, “The company is committed to continuing to be nimble and responsive to a dynamic market. “We are driving efficiencies in other areas of our business so that we can leverage our economies of scale at the same time.”
pixar
Disney’s (DIS) animation division will reportedly lay off up to 20% of its 1,300 employees. tech crunch. The cuts come as the company’s box office revenue struggles and streaming profitability lags.
Disney did not immediately respond to Yahoo Finance’s request for confirmation of the report.
business insider
Online Publishing, a subsidiary of a German publisher Axel Springer SEannounced Thursday that it would cut “approximately 8%” of its workforce. This trend is permeating major news organizations across the country. (See Los Angeles Times next.)
“We ended last year with a plan, a clear target audience, and a vision,” Business Insider CEO Barbara Penn writes. memo To the staff. “This is the year to make that happen and focus on working with the company towards this future. Unfortunately, this also means we have to downsize some areas of our organization.”
Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times announced Major layoffs took place on Tuesday, with at least 115 staffers losing their jobs, or about 20% of the newsroom.
The layoffs are the largest in the Times’ 142-year history, the Times said.
The paper’s owner, Dr. Patrick Soon-Shiong, said the job cuts were necessary to offset annual losses of up to $40 million due to the difficult advertising environment.
sports illustrated
One of the most prominent sports publications laid off most (or all) of its staff last week after its publisher, Arena Group Holdings, was stripped of its license to operate the publication.
Arena Group failed to pay $3.8 million in quarterly license fees to Authentic Brands Group, which has owned the magazine since 2019. That same year, Authentic Brands Group sold the publishing rights to Arena Group in a 10-year deal.
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